The appetite for rare whisky miniatures shows no signs of slowing as 5cl bottles of collector’s favourite Springbank 1919 and the elusive Malt Mill set records.
Rare whisky miniatures Springbank 1919 and Malt Mill set records. Here are the autcion highlights…
Distilled at the tiny distillery within the grounds of Lagavulin on Islay, and only produced between 1908 and 1962, this much sought-after spirit is shrouded in a little mystery and a lot of intrigue. It was only ever used for blends and was never bottled as a single malt.
‘Is this the rarest bottle of whisky in the world? A genuine taste of antiquity? An insight into what whisky tasted like not just fifty years ago, or a hundred years ago, but in the style of the mid nineteenth century that made, as Peter Mackie said in 1908, ‘highland whisky famous.’A taste of something that only a handful of other people have enjoyed.And something that will never, ever, be repeated. That’s not as common as muck. That’s real rare.’
Find out the full and fascinating story of this miniature of Malt Mill from whisky expert and historian Nicholas Morgan.
When I contacted the he winning bidder of the famous Malt Mill miniature, he was absolutely delighted with his his purchase, however he isn’t sure it’ll be opened for tasting: ‘It is exciting! I’m not sure I’ll ever drink it though. The description from Serge Valentin et al is good enough for me. Rather I’ll hang onto it for a few years and feel proud to own it.’
Springbank 1919 50 Year Old is a firm collectors favourite, and broke its own record for a miniature this month with a price of £7,360, having achieved £6,440 back in August 2021. This mini bottle ‘No. 2’ features a certificate of authenticity.
The Springbank Distillery in Campbeltown, where traditional hands on production results in a smaller output than most, has built a global reputation for quality whisky much revered by whisky lovers, in particular these rare early releases.
The prices achieved on these two exceptionally rare miniatures is exciting but perhaps not unexpected given the rarity of these whiskies. Much of the liquid we see coming to auction in miniatures is simply unavailable in full bottles, having been consumed many years before. Miniatures often outlive their full-size counterparts in ‘souvenir’ style. And sometimes, the liquid is so scarce that only miniatures ever existed.
